S. Korea: 90-Year-Old Woman Sentenced for Money Laundering

A South Korean court has sentenced a 90-year-old woman to one year in prison for aiding her son in laundering drug-related funds. The Korea Herald reported that the woman was involved in transferring 386 million won (approximately $260,000 or €220,000) to her son’s accounts while he served time in a Cambodian jail.

The son, a drug trafficking leader, was arrested in July 2020 in Cambodia on charges involving methamphetamine possession. He remains incarcerated there, and investigators suggest his criminal activities persisted during his detention. Prosecutors allege the woman received payments from unnamed sources nine times between April 2020 and February 2022, before funneling the money into her son’s financial channels.

“The defendant knowingly accepted and moved funds tied to narcotic crimes,” the judge stated, emphasizing the social impact of drug offenses and the necessity for a firm penalty.

The court acknowledged the woman’s advanced age and prior absence of criminal convictions when determining her sentence. However, evidence showed she was well aware of her son’s drug activities, as she had visited Cambodia five times in 2019 and received phone updates about his imprisonment. Her involvement, according to the judge, obscured the trail of illicit profits and amplified the spread of narcotics, making the crime more severe.